Mancio fails anew in OPBF title bid, knocked out by rising Japanese star

CEBU, Philippines - ALA Boxing Gym mainstay Jerson ‘Smooth Operator’ Mancio faltered once again in his regional title bid, losing by fifth round TKo to Japanese Naoya Inoue in their Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation (OPBF) light flyweight championship last Friday night in Kokugikan, Tokyo, Japan.

Mancio’s experienced did not help him as he was clearly overpowered by the younger and taller Japanese fighter in their abbreviated 12-round bout.

In a report by fightnews.com, the 26-year-old Mancio had a hard time defending Inoue's furious attacks and was eventually caught by a nasty head and body combination that sent the Filipino boxer down on both knees.

The Esperanza, Agusan Del Sur-native fighter tried to get up but the referee halted the carnage at the 2:51 mark of the fifth round thereby saving Mancio from further punishment.

Mancio first fought for the OPBF belt on October 2, 2011 but was knocked out by Japanese Ryo Miyazaki at the IMP Hall in Osaka, Japan.

With his recent setback, Mancio slipped to 18-5-3, while the 20-year-old Miyazaki stretched his undefeated streak to five fights in a row now spiked with four KOs. (FREEMAN)